Quentin Tarantino’s ‘Cliff Booth’ Sequel Left Sony Behind, and Tom Rothman Explains Why

Sony Pictures chairman Tom Rothman is celebrating the massive success of ‘Spider-Man: Brand New Day,’ but one major Hollywood project still remains a missed opportunity for the studio: Quentin Tarantino’s follow-up to ‘Once Upon a Time in Hollywood.’

The upcoming film, now titled ‘The Adventures of Cliff Booth,’ brings back Brad Pitt’s Oscar-winning character from Tarantino’s 2019 movie. However, unlike the original film, the sequel will not be released by Sony. Instead, it is being developed at Netflix with David Fincher directing from a screenplay written by Tarantino.

During a new interview discussing Sony’s recent successes, Rothman addressed why the studio lost the project and admitted that the situation was disappointing. According to the executive, Sony was originally set to make the film when Tarantino was attached to direct, but the filmmaker eventually decided he no longer wanted to take on the project himself.

Rothman explained that Tarantino’s confidence in Fincher ultimately changed the path of the movie. Since Fincher has an exclusive relationship with Netflix, the project naturally moved to the streaming company rather than staying with Sony.

“Because David Fincher is exclusive to Netflix. We were going to make the movie when Quentin was directing it, but he decided that he didn’t want to do it and changed course,” Rothman said, according to his comments shared in the interview.

The Sony executive added that Tarantino’s trust in Fincher played a major role in the decision. “The only other person that he was comfortable directing his script was David Fincher, and David Fincher was exclusive to Netflix, so we were not going to stand in anybody’s way,” Rothman explained.

While Sony ultimately accepted the situation, Rothman admitted that losing the project was frustrating. “Yes,” he responded when asked if he was disappointed that Sony would not have the sequel.

The move marks a rare situation for Tarantino, who is known for personally directing his own movies. However, the filmmaker previously explained that he was not interested in making the sequel as his final directorial project, saying he wanted his last movie behind the camera to take him into unfamiliar territory.

Fincher’s involvement helped make the transition possible, with Tarantino remaining attached as writer and producer. The project also reunites Fincher with Brad Pitt after their collaborations on films including ‘Se7en,’ ‘Fight Club’ and ‘The Curious Case of Benjamin Button.’

‘The Adventures of Cliff Booth’ will continue the story of Pitt’s character from ‘Once Upon a Time in Hollywood,’ although details about the plot remain mostly secret. The film follows Cliff after the events of the original movie, with new characters joining him in a new chapter of his Hollywood journey.

The project has become one of Netflix’s most talked-about upcoming movies because it combines three major names in modern filmmaking: Tarantino, Fincher and Pitt. For Sony, however, the film represents a rare “what could have been” moment after the studio originally launched the first movie in theaters.

As Sony continues celebrating the success of ‘Spider-Man: Brand New Day,’ Rothman appears focused on the future of theatrical movies, even while acknowledging that some major projects will occasionally move elsewhere. The studio may have missed out on Cliff Booth’s next adventure, but fans will still get to see Tarantino’s world continue under Fincher’s direction.

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